Before he ever taught a resident how to manage a complex case, Dr. John Gallob learned to manage life and death. Now a professor and director of the faculty practice at the UNLV School of Dental Medicine, Gallob’s calm authority and compassion stem from years of service as an Army nurse, a role that demanded precision under pressure, empathy in crisis, and unshakable accountability.

Gallob, who served in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps for five years came from a big family, so attending college without a scholarship would have been almost impossible. “So I joined ROTC," Gallob said. "The Army gave me that opportunity. I served as an active duty nurse in critical care and as a flight nurse. I rejoined the reserves as a dentist and served another 5 years. Eventually, I was medically retired, but the lessons have stayed with me my entire life.”

His military career also placed him on the front lines of humanitarian and emergency response.

“There was a hurricane in the Virgin Islands where I went and set up a hospital,” he recalled. “I was part of a mass casualty event. There was a shooting at Fort Bragg, and I was part of the triage team that took care of that.”

Gallob’s service took him from military hospitals across the U.S. to medical missions in disaster zones. As a flight nurse at the U.S. Army Burn Unit in San Antonio, Texas, he saw more trauma than most people could imagine. “Ninety-two percent of burns are preventable," said Gallob, "and many of them happen to children. I saw people die in the worst possible ways. It was a high-stress, high-consequence job. I thrived at it, but it came with a cost.”

Working 12-hour night shifts in the intensive care unit while also being on call for medical flights took its toll. Eventually, Gallob made the difficult decision to resign his commission. He knew he needed a different path, that he loved medicine, but could no longer keep going at that pace, he said.

That search for balance and healing led him to dentistry.

“I talked to a lot of people,” Gallob said. “Everyone said the same thing: ‘You’re good with your hands, and in dentistry, people don’t die.’ It sounded like a good plan. It let me keep my medical knowledge, but in a field where I could still help people without that constant life-or-death pressure.”

High Expectations: Training Future Dentists to a Standard

After completing dental school, Gallob trained in hospital dentistry, caring for adults with cognitive and physical disabilities. When a faculty member in the general practice residency passed away, his director asked him to stay on as a teacher. “At first, I agreed to help for just one year,” he said. “Then one year turned into another, and another. I realized I really loved teaching.”

Today, Gallob runs a clinical operation of the Faculty Practice and assists in the General Practice Residency (GPR) where he trains new dentists to handle complex cases in hospital and clinical settings. 

“The military taught me that you define the standard, you teach to the standard, and you test to the standard,” he said. “If someone doesn’t meet it, you retrain them. That’s how I approach education. Everyone deserves a fair chance, but everyone also deserves accountability.”

Tough Lessons, Recovery, and Moving Forward

Though Gallob’s military experience taught him toughness and precision, it also deepened his empathy. “I’ve seen the worst things a person can see,” he said. “That perspective helps me remember that when someone’s having a bad day, whether it’s a patient or a student, it’s usually because they’re scared or overwhelmed.” 

Even after leaving the Army, Gallob continues to live by its code of integrity, discipline, and self-sacrifice. He admits the transition to civilian life wasn’t easy. “I have PTSD,” he said candidly. “It’s something I didn’t understand at first. But I’ve learned that resilience doesn’t mean pretending nothing hurts. It means finding purpose and meaning again.” 

That sense of purpose now defines his work at UNLV. “When patients come in anxious or in pain, I remind myself that they’re scared,” he said. “If I approach every person with respect and service, I can help them in a way that goes beyond dentistry.”

Katie Bricarell contributed to this article.